ok, so most people reading this blog are broke college students or are on a similar budget. and let's face it, we've all eaten instant ramen at least once. it's so cheap, but has a ton of sodium. so i'm going to base this post purely on my preference -- not healthiness. as far as store-bought 方便面 (fang bian mian) or "convenient noodles" there are some good ones just under a dollar and there are some pretty crappy ones for less than fifty cents.
exhibit a: maruchan. i honestly do not like these cooked. if you need them as an ingredient for something, go for it--because it's cheap. i think it's only good for chinese chicken cabbage salad (see recipe), but that's just me. (i didn't bother buying maruchan's cup noodles) (ranking: lowest)
exhibit b1: nissin instant noodles. we used to get this brand all the time, i always never liked maruchan. i don't like the texture of these noodles as much as the sapporo ichiban ones but, it's better than maruchan's cardboard. (rank: middle-high)
exhibit b2: nissin cup noodles. i used to eat these all the time senior year in high school for lunch..that and couscous--but that's a different story. our yearbook teacher (rest her soul) was so awesome and let us do all sorts of stuff--and other yearbookies would occasionally make fun of me for actually bringing chopsticks with me to eat it. anyway; i loved the dried vegetables in it, and the dried shrimp/beef in them, i don't entirely know why...but yeah. ^^; (rank: middle-low)
exhibit c: sapporo ichiban. ever since i was able to drive--lol, halfway through college--i've been going to the korean grocery near my apartment and saw these. eventually, i found them at the walmart grocery/neighborhood market..whatev. (i haven't actually looked at wm supercenter) but these are really good. for a little while, i'd add prosciutto to it while cooking and it was awesome--but that's only because my mom randomly bought me a giant pack of prosciutto from sams. -.-' anyway, as far as texture of the noodles, i like this one the most--i haven't had authentic ramen before, so i can't say how any of these compare, but hey, this is my top choice. don't go for the miso soup flavored one, it's kinda weird. (ranking: highest)
lagniappe: myojo instant udon. it basically comes the same as ramen, just that the noodles have been partially cooked and are kept moist in the packaging. the noodles are ok, i really prefer eating fresh udon, but sometimes i eat these if i'm not in a ramen mood or if i'm super craving udon and don't want to spend 很多钱 (lots of money). i think the other thing too is that i prefer the thick udon noodles to ramen...but i like angel hair pasta and not spaghetti.........??? don't ask. i'm a weirdo. anyway, as far as flavor, these are pretty similar to regular ramen but they also come in some non-standard flavors, like: crab, mushroom, and some spicy ones...(not that the other brands don't)...but i don't like spicy stuff.
all in all, i don't really eat ramen all that often anymore--again, the sodium thing--but whenever i don't feel like cooking---or there's no food at my mom's, i go for a pack. ~L-c ^.~
exhibit a: maruchan, ~33¢ per package
exhibit b: nissin top noodle, ~33¢ per package, & cup noodles, ~30¢ per cup
exhibit c: sapporo ichiban, ~70¢ per package
lagniappe: myojo instant udon, ~80¢ per package
